Ils ont tué trois petites filles
Language: French (Français)
Ils ont tué trois petites filles
Pour voir ce qu'il y a dans leur cœur.
Le premier était plein de bonheur ;
Et partout où coula son sang,
Trois serpents sifflèrent trois ans.
Le deuxième était plein de douceur,
Et partout où coula son sang,
Trois agneaux [broutèrent]1 trois ans.
Le troisième était plein de malheur,
Et partout où coula son sang,
Trois archanges veillèrent trois ans.
Available sung texts: (what is this?)
• F. Schmitt About the headline (FAQ)
View original text (without footnotes)
Confirmed with Maurice Maeterlinck, Serres chaudes suivies de Quinze chansons, Brussels: Paul Lacomblez, 1900, Pages 99-100.
1 Schmitt: "broutérent"
Text Authorship:
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Irène Fuerison (1875 - 1931), "Ils ont tué trois petites filles", subtitle: "D'après Maeterlinck", op. 15 (1915) [ voice and piano ] [sung text not yet checked]
- by Florent Schmitt (1870 - 1958), "Ils ont tué trois petites filles", op. 45 no. 4 (1912), published 1912 [ voice and piano ], from 4 Lieds, no. 4, Paris, Éd. S. Chapelier [sung text checked 1 time]
- by Henri Stierlin-Vallon (1887 - 1952), "Ils ont tué", published 1919 [ voice and piano ], from Chansons tristes, 7 poèmes de Maurice Maeterlinck, no. 5, Genève, Ad. Henn [sung text not yet checked]
Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):
- ENG English (Grant Hicks) , copyright © 2025, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
Research team for this page: Emily Ezust
[Administrator] , Grant Hicks
[Guest Editor] This text was added to the website: 2009-01-30
Line count: 11
Word count: 67
They killed three little girls
Language: English after the French (Français)
They killed three little girls
To see what was in their heart.
The first was full of happiness;
And wherever its blood flowed,
Three snakes hissed for three years.
The second was full of gentleness,
And wherever its blood flowed,
Three lambs grazed for three years.
The third was full of misfortune,
And wherever its blood flowed,
Three archangels kept watch for three years.
About the headline (FAQ)
Translations of titles:
"Ils ont tué" = "They killed"
"Ils ont tué trois petites filles" = "They killed three little girls"
Text Authorship:
- Translation from French (Français) to English copyright © 2025 by Grant Hicks, (re)printed on this website with kind permission. To reprint and distribute this author's work for concert programs, CD booklets, etc., you may ask the copyright-holder(s) directly or ask us; we are authorized to grant permission on their behalf. Please provide the translator's name when contacting us.
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Based on:
This text was added to the website: 2025-09-23
Line count: 11
Word count: 64
